I read two books in January. Just finished Charles Bukowski’s novel about getting the movie Barfly made. I read it first and then looked at the wikipedia page to see who was who. Some of the names were obvious like Werner Herzog changed to Wenner Zergog. But the Sean Penn to Tom Pell was not.
I’m watching the movie now and it’s crazy how accurate what he wrote is to what came on screen. He’s always been really good about describing life in all it’s sordid detail.
This is kind of the capstone to his novels. We’ve gone from his childhood, through, drunken meandering, to work and then fame, money and Hollywood. He’s a much more subdued man now in his old age. Still always a drink in hand, but living his best life, married, with a house and five cats. Writing a screenplay for someone else instead of writing what he wants to write.
I love how dirty everything is in his world and the way his language flows as he writes about that world.